– Norwegian abattoir has slaughtered 100 reindeer the halal way
– The owner is planning on sending the meat as far as Dubai
– Harry Dyrstad is also preparing to cure reindeer to produce a halal ham
By SARA MALM
PUBLISHED: 10:21 GMT, 3 December 2013
Muslims in Norway will be able to follow local Christmas food traditions this year, after a butcher unveiled the country’s first halal reindeer meat.
Harry Dyrstad, owner of specialist wildlife abattoir Vilteksperten, north of Trondheim, enlisted the help of a certified halal butcher and has 100 reindeer ready to be sent off to the shops.
The butcher has had interest from as far afield as Dubai, and he is looking forward to bringing reindeer to the previously unexplored Muslim market.
Roasted Rudolph: A Norwegian abattoir has slaughtered more than 100 reindeer which have been given the seal of approval by the country’s Islamic Council
After invitation from Mr Dyrstad, the Islamic Council of Norway visited the abattoir and has given their seal of approval on the reindeer meat.
Mr Dyrstad is currently in the process of butchering the animals to send them off to shops around Norway, but says he plans on exploring other markets.
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‘We had the idea one-and-a-half years ago,’ Dyrstad told The Local.
‘We spoke to someone who had some contacts in Dubai, and he said that if you want to sell reindeer meat, it has to be halal, so we had to try.’
Mr Dyrstad has also looked into the possibility of curing some of the halal reindeer in order to introduce ham to the Muslim community.
Muslims in Norway will now be able to join in the tradition of reindeer for Christmas dinner, as well as tasting ham as the abattoir plans to cure reindeer meat to produce something similar to pig
Muslims in Norway will now be able to join in the tradition of reindeer for Christmas dinner, as well as tasting ham as the abattoir plans to cure reindeer meat to produce something similar to pig
‘We got some information that we could produce some ham from the reindeer, so Muslim children can have ham on their sandwiches,’ he said.
Reindeer meat is popular across Scandinavia and is served in many homes as part of Christmas dinner, a tradition in which Norwegian Muslims will now be able to take part in,
‘It is going to be exciting to see how Muslims receive the novelty of reindeer. This is a completely new halalproduct that Muslims have not had access till before,’ Mehtab Afsar, General Secretary of the Islamic Council of Norway, told Adresseavisen.
‘I have been told that this is a very good meat, but I have never tasted it myself.’
Reindeer is both farmed and wild in Norway and the rest of Scandinavia. The Sami, the indigenous people of northern Scandinavia, have been herding reindeer for centuries and are the group of people more often found still living off reindeer farming.
Their local language has more than 400 words for reindeer, the meat and products involved in reindeer herding.
The rising acceptance of halal meat due to its scientific and hygienic slaughtering and processing methods is spicing up the US 600 billion global halal meat market impressively.
Studies have shown that halal slaughter protects consumers from many diseases which are not possible in the conventional methods used in many countries.
Ahead of a key halal conclave in Sharjah, experts opine that halal slaughter of animals has a great role in preventing infectious diseases, and is seen one of the main reasons for the popularity of the product even among non-Muslims.
“The way the slaughtering process is carried out is of significant importance for both human health and safety and quality of the meat. Halal slaughter involves cutting of jugular veins, throat and oesophagus, which facilitates draining of blood from the animal and thus prevents growth and multiplication of harmful micro-organisms,” said Dr. Ibrahim Hussein Ahmed Abd El Rahim, Professor of Infectious Diseases, Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah Al-Mukarama, Saudi Arabia.
“Prevention of neck separation is very important to complete the bleeding process to remove all the blood from carcass. Blood is a typical media for proliferation of different kinds of microbes, therefore its complete removal from the slaughtered animal is vital to protect consumers from infectious diseases,” he said.
Dr. Ibrahim Hussein Ahmed Abd El Rahim will be attending the upcoming Halal Congress Middle East that will be held at Expo Centre Sharjah from December 16 to 18, 2013. It will be organized alongside the 2nd OIC Halal Middle East Exhibition which is held under the patronage of His Highness Dr Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Al Qassimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah.
Globally, the halal market that spans from food to finance and tourism is worth US 3 trillion. According to latest estimates, halal products have two billion consumers worldwide that grows more than 20 per cent annually.
Realizing the importance of the subject, a panel discussion will be dedicated to the science behind halal during the three-day congress. To be chaired by Shawky Ibrahim Abdel-Karim Allam, Sheikh Al-Azhar, Grand Mufti of Egypt, the discussion will take up issues of stunning, mechanical slaughtering, tasmiah and animal feed, among others.
Panellists for the discussion include Mufti Taqi Usmani from Pakistan; Mufti Mustafa Ceric from Bosnia; Mufti Sheikh Ravil Gainutdin, from Russia, Mr Nabil A Molla, Secretary General of GCC Standardization Organization and Dr. Abdulqahir Mohammad Qamar of International Islamic Fiqah Academy, Saudi Arabia.
It will also feature representatives from the Standards and Metrology Institute for the Islamic Countries; Emirates Standards & Metrology Authority-UAE; National Accreditation Council-Pakistan; JAKIM – Halal Certification Authority-Malaysia; MUI – Majlis Ulema-Indonesia; and Halal Science Centre-Thailand.
Besides, reflecting the surging trade between the region and Australia, Meat and Livestock Australia, has signed up as Platinum Sponsor to talk about the Goodness of Australian Meat.
The association of Meat and Livestock Australia with the congress comes at a time when Australia’s red meat exports to the Middle East in May this year totalled 16,492 tonnes, a 46 per cent increase year-on-year and 7 per cent above the previous record set in April 2013, according to Meat and Livestock Australia figures.
Other topics to be taken up for discussion at the congress include tapping the growing halal trade; halal cosmetics, pharmaceuticals & tourism; benefits of halal certification; Islamic banking & takawful; technology for halal food traceability and harmonization of halal standards.
IA
London School of Islamics Trust
http://www.londonschoolofislamis.org.uk
No Muslim will buy halal meat that tastes like ham.
What are you all thinking Muslims do Not know the taste of Ham and would never care about it.